


Beyond Rivals a Soulmate AU

by ox0hunny0xo



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, M/M, Slice of Life, Smut, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates, eternal rivals
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-12
Updated: 2017-10-02
Packaged: 2018-12-27 05:46:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12074724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ox0hunny0xo/pseuds/ox0hunny0xo
Summary: There a different bonds a person forms in their lifetime. In the ninja world, a jutsu is cast on all young ninja to help them identify these bonds.A special mark will appear when a ninja meets their teammates, their soulmate, and their eternal rival. Neji already despised the tight grip that his fate held over him; and that was before he knew that his supposed eternal rival was the ninja that can't use ninjutsu.A Neji/Lee fic with alternating POV





	1. Encounter With The Beast

**Author's Note:**

> Hi there! I have not written fanfiction in a very long time so bear with me. This work isn't Beta'd or fixed at all so feel free to let me know if something needs to be fixed. Information about the bonds will be in the end notes. I won't be staying completely true to cannon, I might change the timing of events to suit my needs. I am planning on updating regularly, but I will need to gauge how long writing each chapter will take me so for right now my goal is 1-2x a week.

Rock Lee glanced over at his kitchen clock as he ate his breakfast. It read 4:13am, so Lee wolfed down the rest of his meal to stay on schedule. At 4:15am he was closing the door to his apartment so he could head to the training grounds for his morning workout. Lee had to be at the academy by 6:30am, so he was running at full speed to make the most of his morning workout. Suddenly when he turned a corner, he bumped into a green-clad man the size of an ox.

“I am very sorry sir! I did not see you standing there.”  
_For my carelessness I will do 200 extra push-ups this morning!_ Lee thought to himself. 

“Ho Ho! That's quite alright, I'm happy to see you are making the most of your youthful energy. Where are you headed to in your spirited glory?” Gai chuckled to himself, observing the boy in front of him. The boy's long black hair was tied back in a braid, and each of his eyes were framed by large eyebrows much like his own. 

“I am headed to Konoha's training grounds for my morning workout, I am fortunate enough to have graduated from the Ninja Academy yesterday and I want to ensure I will be prepared to face my new teammates!” Lee's voice rang out with vigor.  
Gai took in the students enthusiasm and was happy to know that the Will of Fire is being passed to the new generation with renewed passion. 

“Is that so?” Gai smirked at Lee with a glint in his eye, “Your fervor has inspired me, perhaps I can join you in your training and help you grow as a shinobi!” Gai's voice rang out.  
Lee's eyes light up with excitement at the prospect of not only having someone to train with, but also the opportunity of gaining knowledge from a shinobi who's stature could only be attained after years of extensive training. 

“That would be wonderful...that is if it will not be too much to ask of you.” Lee's voice wavered at the end, desperately hoping that this man would spare some of his time to train with him.

“Nonsense! I would love to help you hone your skills. It is my duty to help youthful spirits like you blossom into their full potential! I am Might Gai, Konoha's Noble Green Beast!”

Lee's eyes lit up once again. _I will have to create an alias as amazing as Gai-san's one day!_ Lee thought. “I am Rock Lee, it is very nice to meet you Gai-san! Thank you for spending this morning with me!”

Once Lee was done speaking they exchanged a nod and began running to the training grounds. Once they arrived Lee realized he had not told Gai of his limitations. 

“Gai-san, I realized that I had not mentioned that I am unable to use ninjutsu or genjutsu; rather I rely on taijutsu alone. I believe that I will still be a wonderful shinobi despite this, for I channel all of my determination into becoming a taijutsu master. I hope this does not disappoint you.” 

Gai was surprised to learn this, but nevertheless respected Lee for his tenacious attitude. “I could never be disappointed by a display of youthful ambition. Let us spar after warming up so I may gauge where your taijutsu skills are currently.”

Once they had stretched their muscles (and Lee had done the extra 200 push-ups he had imposed on himself), Lee and Gai both got into a battle-ready positions. Within seconds they were exchanging blows with each other. With every powerful swing of their limbs, they adapted to the other's form and fighting style. Gai had started off going easy on the child he was sparring with, but found Lee was able to handle more complicated moves. In a matter of five minutes, Gai knew that Lee's goal was attainable for him with enough hard work and perseverance. Their bodies communicated for them, and after another thirty minutes of sparring, Gai was able to give Lee some invaluable pointers. 

“Lee, I believe the goal for today's training should be for you to feel more confident in your form while fighting, do you agree?”

Lee wiped some sweat from his brow, “Yes, Gai-san!”

“Try to utilize the tips I gave you and come at me again” Gai shouted to Lee.

“Hai!”

After another twenty minutes of sparring Lee really was starting to feel more confident in his forms. Gai's tips had tweaked some of Lee's weaker points, and Lee found that the adjustment in his blocks had shaved off some of the time needed to recover and deliver the next blow. 

“Thank you very much Gai-san. What you have taught me today will not be forgotten or taken lightly. I will continue to nurture the knowledge you have bestowed upon me!” Lee said proudly.

Gai smiled back, before he could reply he felt a familiar burning on his right shoulder. _Well I'll be damned..._ Gai thought to himself.

Lee suddenly gripped his shoulder. His eyes grew wider when he realized his shoulder was glowing. He began to stammer, “W-What?”

Gai laughed whole-heartedly. “That my dear boy is what it feels like to be marked. It seems fate has brought us together this morning.” He pushed his sleeve up so that his shoulder was bare. The glow that it had emitted had begun to fade and now a red and green X was visible on his tanned skin. “This is a TeamBond mark, mine used to be red to symbolize the bond between my former team and I, but I had neglected to mention to you that starting today I will be a squad leader to a new team of genin.” Gai winked at Lee. “The green line symbolizes the bond that we will be forming together along with our other two teammates. It is a beautiful coincidence that we had crossed paths before the team building exercises at the academy today.”

Lee pushed up his own sleeve and looked in awe at the new green X on his arm. Lee had known about the different marks from the academy, but having his own made him feel warm inside. Lee was used to having to be on his own for the majority of his life; he loved the physical proof that he belonged to something. 

“What about our other teammates?” Lee thought aloud.

“They don't have theirs yet, but that's what today's team building exercises are for. Iruka will explain it better when we get to the academy. Speaking of which...” Gai held his chin in his palm, “I think it's about time we start heading that way.” Gai flashed Lee a huge smile.

“Yes Gai-san!” Lee said with a wide grin. Together they raced to the academy, arriving a few minutes early. They made their way to the yard the class would be meeting at to await the arrival of the other students. Iruka walked out of the building with supplies in each arm, instantly he was swarmed by both of the enthusiastic males. They were just about finished helping Iruka set up the remaining training aids when Gai spoke up. 

“I have some marvelous news Iruka! It seems destiny had come early for your precious student and I. On the training field this morning, Rock Lee and I developed TeamBond marks.”

Iruka raised an eyebrow at Gai. “Is that so? I mean...” His eyes bounced between them both, “Actually now that I think about both of you, I'm not that surprised.” Iruka laughed to himself, “Well, that is truly great for you two. Plus, it will save us some time today now that we know who one of your three students is. Now both of you take a seat over there, it seems some of the other students are starting to arrive as well as the teachers.”

Lee obediently listened and sat in the student area near Gai. Lee looked up at Gai silently. Sometime during this mornings adventure, he realized something important about Might Gai. _I will look up to Gai-san not only as a teammate, but as my role model._ Lee thought.


	2. Welcome

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Guys! I've had a rough few weeks. Shortly after I put up the first chapter I found out that my 14 year old dog had breast cancer. We had to put her down a few days ago, and I've been really out of it. I'm not very happy with how this chapter came out, but I felt bad making you guys wait any longer. I'm sure there is errors (I couldn't get it to italicize for the life of me), I really didn't have the energy to edit right now. If you have ever lost a fur-baby then you know what a soul shattering experience it is. I also got a second job, but I promise this fic is a priority. I am starting to heal and I am hoping to have the next chapter up within 10 days. Summary of the bonds will still be in end notes.

Iruka looked out at all of his graduated genin and their soon-to-be squad leaders. His chest swelled with pride for a moment as he stood in front of them.  
“Alright everyone, please listen carefully. Today we will be working on team building exercises to determine who each of you will TeamBond with. You should all be familiar with the types of bonds already." Iruka paused, eyeing some of the kids who were whispering to each other. Once they felt his icy stare, they quieted and refocused their attention to their former sensei.  
After clearing his throat Iruka continued, "When you TeamBond with someone, your right shoulder will start glowing and you'll feel a burning sensation. Shortly after, you'll see a colored X appear. Your X will match the other members of your squad with the exception of the squad leader. You will most likely bond with your team one member at a time until you've completed your four man squad. To do this, you will be participating in small mock missions. Once the task is complete you will know if you have bonded with any of the members you did the mission with. Are there any questions before we get started?” Iruka asked, eyeing some of his more troublesome students.

Lee knew he should have been paying more attention to the questions his peers had, but he kept eyeing Gai. _I cannot believe that I am part of a team now...I wonder who the other two students will be?_ Lee thought. He looked around at the other students. He barely knew any of them despite being in the same class. While Lee had kept to himself most of the time, he had truly tried to make friends. Unfortunately, most of his classmates either avoided him or made fun of him for his enthusiasm and eyebrows.

__“Any more questions?” Iruka asked the group. Nobody seemed to have anything else to say, so Iruka began to group them together. While Iruka was wrangling together groups of students, Gai walked up to Lee._ _

__“Lee, as Iruka had mentioned, I will be your squad leader and teammate. Let's wait over here until Iruka puts two other students with our group.” Gai said with a smile. Within a few minutes, a boy with short black hair and a girl with two buns high on her head approached them._ _

__"Hey. I'm Hotaka." Hotaka's face had an apathetic expression as he spoke. Lee was thankful that he did not recognize Hotaka as one of his bullies. In fact, Hotaka also seemed to keep to himself during their time at the academy._ _

__"Hi! I'm Tenten." Tenten's voice happily rang out to the group. Lee did know Tenten to an extent. She had always been nice to him at least. He also knew she was spirited and passionate about the shinobi lifestyle by the way she talked in class._ _

__Gai looked at Lee expectantly, and it took Lee a moment before he realized that it was his turn to introduce himself._ _

__"Greetings!" Lee practically yelled, "I am Rock Lee!" Lee unconsciously stood as straight as his body let him. Much to his distress, social encounters had never been Lee's strong suit._ _

__Gai and Tenten both laughed lightly at Lee's awkward introduction. Hotaka looked at Lee with a puzzled expression before Gai took his turn in the spotlight._ _

__"Hello students." Gai winked at Lee, "I am Might Gai! Konoha's Noble Green Beast!" Gai held a thumbs up in their direction._ _

_I will definitely be as amazing as Gai-san one day._ Lee thought while smiling to himself. Lee's body started to relax, even though he did not know very much about Gai, he had a way of making Lee feel welcome, and that was something Lee has been longing for as long as he can remember. While he was in awe of the magnificent Might Gai, Iruka walked up to their group. 

__

__"Gai, are you and your team ready to attempt your mock mission?" Iruka asked._ _

__"I do believe we are ready!" Gai said as he gave an identical thumbs up to Iruka._ _

__"Alright. I will need you all to follow me this way." Iruka said before he started making his way to the tree line at the edge of the yard._ _

__The group followed him until they reached a flag in front of the trees. Iruka turned to them and began to give them their mission._ _

__"There is a second flag identical to this one hidden in the woods. Your team must locate that flag and place it next to this one. Do you all understand the objective?" Iruka asked._ _

__"Yes Iruka-sensei!" Lee said while bowing. Tenten and Hotaka just nodded at their former instructor. Once affirming that they understood, Iruka started making his way to another group to give instructions._ _

__Gai's face lit up as he looked at the students. "Let us all take a moment to memorize what our flag looks like."_ _

__The students looked at the light blue flag. It had a cartoon tortoise on one side framed by a red circle._ _

__"That's rather...distinctive." Tenten said with a slight grimace._ _

__After a giving the students a moment to absorb the image of beauty, Gai decided it was time to lead them into the forest.  
"Please follow me in and we will begin our divine search for our flag's twin." Gai said with gusto as he began to step forward into the brush. _ _

__Lee took his first step into the brush, he loved the sound of leaves talking as the wind passed. Once his group was surrounded by trees, they began to search the area for the flag. Lee and Gai began hopping from branch to branch in the trees to search, while Tenten and Hotaka started looking in the foliage closer to ground.  
After twenty minutes of vigorous searching, they decided to cover more ground and move west. This time, Lee and Gai took the low-ground. Lee’s head was buried in a bush when he heard an excited squeak._ _

__“I found it! I found our flag!” Tenten squealed._ _

__Hotaka was perched on a branch a few yards away. His head shot up when he heard Tenten and a small smile formed on his face._ _

__“Where was it?” Hotaka asked as Tenten was waving the flag triumphantly._ _

__“There’s a hole in the tree on this side, it was crammed in it.” Tenten said as she made her way safely back to the ground. Gai and Lee were already waiting for her at the bottom of the tree, and Hotaka lept down to meet them in one swift motion._ _

__“Congratulations team!” Gai’s said with his ‘Good Gai’ thumbs up. “Now we must bring this flag back to our original and our mission will be complete!”_ _

__They ran through the forest back to the clearing, and Tenten proudly placed the small flag in the ground. She smiled as she stood up, and locked eyes with Lee. Suddenly, she hunched back over grabbing her right shoulder. Hotaka looked in awe as her shoulder began to glow. Tenten’s eyes were wide as she looked back and forth between the men._ _

__“Wait. None of you are bonding? Who did I bond with?” Tenten looked bewildered at her squad leader.  
Gai laughed as he took in his new pupil’s confusion. The glowing from the jutsu had faded and he could now see the green X on her bare shoulder. “You are now firmly Bonded with Team Gai!” Gai said looking up with his hands on his hips, “So far, it is you, Rock Lee, and I.” Gai looked over at Hotaka sadly. Before Hotaka could realize what was happening, Gai pulled him into a crushing bear hug and lifted him from the ground. _ _

__“Hotaka I am sincerely sorry that you will not be joining our team.” Gai said as all the air left Hotaka’s body, “However it seems that fate has other plans for you, and I am grateful to have this mission with you.”_ _

__Hotaka’s eyes were practically jumping from his head when Gai’s vice relented._ _

__“Jeez, he’s pretty intense huh?” Tenten whispered to Lee while watching the exchange. Before he could reply, Tenten let a giggle leave her lips. He followed her gaze to Hotaka’s face and could not resist smiling himself._ _

__“That’s okay… really.” Hotaka managed to wheeze out. He was firmly put back on the ground. He took a deep breath, nothing had ever made him miss air as much as Gai’s hug._ _

__They sat together and chatted before Iruka came by with a small group of students. Gai retold Iruka about their mission, and Iruka congratulated Tenten on finding her team. Before Lee could find anything meaningful to say, Hotaka was waving goodbye and joining the students behind Iruka._ _

__“Now, I think I’ll have Neji Hyuga join your group.” Iruka said to Gai. On que, Neji stepped out from the cluster of students and joined the team. He stood close to Gai and eyed him skeptically._ _

__“Alright, Thank you Iruka!” Gai said with a smile before turning his attention to the lavender eyes that were scrutinizing him._ _

__“Hello there! I am Mighto Gai, Konoha’s Noble Green Beast!”_ _

__“Hello, I am Neji Hyuga.” Neji looked at his other teammates. “Hello Tenten, Lee.”_ _

__Tenten looked at Neji with a smile, and Lee nodded to acknowledge him. The only thing Lee knew about Neji was that he was very cynical about Lee’s abilities. In the beginning of their time at the academy, Neji scoffed at the concept of a ninja that relied only on taijutsu, and encouraged Lee to give up. Since then, Lee had avoided Neji._ _

__When Lee turned back to the flags, one was missing._ _

__“They must have summoned it and re-hid it in the woods” Tenten whispered to him, as if she had read his thoughts._ _

__“That would indeed make sense Tenten!” Lee whispered back with a grin._ _

__“Are we prepared to begin our mission to find the flag again?” Gai asked his group. They all nodded, and Neji took a step forward._ _

__“Byakugan!” Neji yelled out. Within a second he analyzed his team’s flag and then looked to the forest. He turned to his team after another moment. “I have located our flag, please follow me.”_ _

__After a few minutes of walking in the forest Neji stopped in front of them. Neji bent over and pulled the flag from behind a rock. Without saying anything, Neji began walking back to their starting point. Iruka had already told Neji that the other members of the team were bonded to each other, so he saw no point in dragging this out. Afterall, it was pretty unlikely this was going to be his team, and he wanted to get the bonding over with. Neji hated the idea of bonds and what they represented. His clan’s seal was a manipulation on the bonding jutsu, and nothing good had ever come from that for Neji.  
Gai frowned to himself, disappointed at how anti-climatic this search was. However, he was impressed with the Hyuga-clan’s jutsu and Neji’s mastery of it. He had fought alongside many Hyuga in his prime, and he knew how useful the visual prowess could be on missions.  
Lee walked next to Tenten through the forest. Lee had seen Neji use the Byakugan before, but watching Neji use it this time made him feel a little worthless. Lee didn’t necessarily want to be the center of attention, but he wanted to be able to contribute to his team. _How could I ever be useful to someone with abilities like that?_ Lee thought. He tried to shake the thought and reassure himself, but he couldn’t help but feel a pang of hurt in his chest. 

__Neji’s pace slowed for a moment. He felt a small wave of sadness wash over him. He quickly refocused himself and walked faster, trying not to think about the feeling. Neji was apprehensive enough to know that the sadness was not his, but instead someone he would be bonded with one day. Neji believed that feeling someone else's emotions was a burden, after all, Neji already had enough problems with his own._ _

__It didn’t take long before the group made it out of the forest and back to the clearing. Neji reached down and stuck the flag into the ground. He stood back up and looked at his group. Before he could take a step, he felt a burning sensation. His eyebrow twitched in annoyance as he realized what was happening. ~~Of course I’d be part of this useless team~~ Neji thought to himself sarcastically. Once he stopped glowing, he felt a solid thud on his back. _ _

__“Welcome to the team Neji!” Gai said, patting Neji’s back hard enough to make him stumble._ _

__“Thank you.” Neji spat the words out with a bitter taste in his mouth._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are 3 bond types: RivalMark, SoulMark, TeamBonds  
> None of the marks will fade after forming  
> All glow when they manifest
> 
> RivalMarks
> 
> Formed after first spar or fight  
> Can feel feelings before mark is formed/intrusive thoughts  
> Unique symbol to the rivals (same symbol different color)  
> Only one Rival  
> RivalMark is on forearm
> 
> SoulMarks
> 
> Formed after first kiss with soulmate  
> Can feel feelings before mark is formed/intrusive thoughts  
> Same unique symbol as soulmate (always pink)  
> More than one is rare  
> Soulmark is over the heart
> 
> TeamBonds
> 
> Formed after time working together to attain a goal or complete a task  
> Cannot feel feelings before mark, but can after  
> Typically 4 per team (4 man squads) can be bonded to 2 teams total  
> Teambond is on the right shoulder  
> mark is an X, One color if bonded to one team, or if bonded to two the mark has one line of each team color
> 
>  
> 
> Thanks for the read!

**Author's Note:**

> There are 3 bond types: RivalMark, SoulMark, TeamBonds  
> None of the marks will fade after forming  
> All glow when they manifest
> 
> RivalMarks
> 
> Formed after first spar or fight  
> Can feel feelings before mark is formed/intrusive thoughts  
> Unique symbol to the rivals (same symbol different color)  
> Only one Rival  
> RivalMark is on forearm
> 
> SoulMarks
> 
> Formed after first kiss with soulmate  
> Can feel feelings before mark is formed/intrusive thoughts  
> Same unique symbol as soulmate (always pink)  
> More than one is rare  
> Soulmark is over the heart
> 
> TeamBonds
> 
> Formed after time working together to attain a goal or complete a task  
> Cannot feel feelings before mark, but can after  
> Typically 4 per team (4 man squads) can be bonded to 2 teams total  
> Teambond is on the right shoulder  
> mark is an X, One color if bonded to one team, or if bonded to two the mark has one line of each team color
> 
>  
> 
> Thanks for the read!


End file.
